Knives that will last for a lifetime of hunting

Besides proper hunting clothing and your rifle, bow or shotgun, a good hunting knife is one of the most important pieces of equipment for any hunter. Meet Fällkniven, Härkila’s close partner that shares our deep Nordic roots.

The knife – one of the oldest tools in the toolbox of humanity – is closely linked to human evolution, just like our ability to harness the power of fire. The oldest known knives are more than two million years old, making this simple tool much older than our species.

Homo sapiens had knives from the very beginning, and we knew how to use them. Knives are a natural part of our existence. We always had the knife – just like the wolf always had its canines – and knives have always been essential to our survival in nature.

“It is in the extremes that the quality of a knife becomes apparent”

Nordic hunting knives

When gralloching a couple of moose during the last hours of daylight on a cold October day, you will soon realize the difference between an excellent knife and a mediocre one. If you are familiar with the knife, it fits you well and is sharp; the work will flow much faster. Your cuts will be more accurate, and the risk of cutting yourself will be much smaller. It is in the extremes that the quality of a knife becomes apparent, but it is in the everyday use of the knife that you grow familiar with it.

You are naked and helpless in the wild without a knife. The list of tasks that you can complete with a good blade is practically endless. You will find yourself using it to cut through meat and hide (sometimes muddy or icy) or work inside a carcass.

You will be cutting rope and branches to build shelters, splitting tinder to start a fire, slicing apples, and opening sacks, cans, and bottles. A general hunting knife sees a lot of use and abuse, and the better you know it, the more you find yourself using it. It's that simple.

A knife is a personal tool that ideally becomes deeply ingrained in our muscle memory as a natural extension of our bodies. A knife is not simply a knife. There is your personal knife, and then there are all the other knives.

Harsh conditions – functional design

Scandinavia is a cold, wet, and dark place compared to most other inhabited places on earth. Survival was a genuine challenge to the early Scandinavians, who had to rely entirely on their outdoor skills to thrive in the unforgiving Nordic environment. Over the millennia, we developed our own knife culture adapted to the harsh climate. We prefer functionality over flashy design. Quality, strength, and durability are highly appreciated. Less is more.

The Swedish knifemaking company Fällkniven has its roots in Scandinavian hunting and fishing traditions. It was founded in Boden in Norrbotten – the northernmost province of Sweden – by Peter Hjortberger, a hunter, fisherman, and knife enthusiast. Today the family business is lead by Peter’s son, Eric Hjortberger.

The name "Fällkniven" means "the folding knife" in Swedish. It is pronounced fell-knee-wen with an audible "k" and pressure on both the first two syllables. Most English-speaking knife connoisseurs simple refers to these knives as "Falkys."

The company launched its first proprietary knife design in 1987. Fällkniven swiftly became known for its quality knives. The big international breakthrough came in 1995 when the Fällkniven model F1 passed the rigorous tests needed to become the official survival knife for pilots in the Swedish Air Force. Since then, Fällkniven has been an internationally well-known brand famous for its cutting-edge knifemaking technology (pun very much intended). You can easily recognize the Scandinavian design in the smooth lines of any knife in the Fällkniven line-up. And you can certainly feel the Nordic heritage in the knife when handling one of these in the field.

Quality steel – quality knife

Apart from the functional Scandinavian design, Fällkniven is known for using state-of-the-art stainless knife steel in its blades. The Technical University of Luleå constantly tests the quality of the blades.

The premium blade steel makes the knives retain their sharpness much longer than cheaper alternatives. It does make the knives slightly harder to sharpen. However, as an owner of one of these knives, you soon learn to appreciate the longer intervals between sharpening the knife. Especially if you ever had the experience of having to work with a dull knife in wet and cold conditions.

There are clear links between the quality of a product, the effort invested in its development, and its price. Fällkniven knives are not cheap, far from it. Over the long lifespan of one of these premium knives, they are, however, very cost-efficient. Fällknivens warranty commitments are as low as 0,1 %. That fact says a lot about the uncompromising quality you can expect from these knives. The company says their knives are the strongest, serial manufactured stainless steel knives in the world.

Suppose you are an active hunter and sharpen your blade regularly. In that case, you will eventually have to have the blade rehoned to bring the knife back to as-new condition. Fällkniven offers this service to all owners of their product at a very modest cost. After having your knife honed, you will be ready for years of continued action. One of these knives will last a lifetime with a minimal amount of maintenance for most hunters.

Fällkniven knives are excellent, functional, and durable tools made for hard hunting and bushcraft use. Probably the greatest.